I doubt Marvin Lewis will land a head coaching job right away. I think he'll go back to being a defensive coordinator for at least one stint. He had all kinds of talent in Cincinnati and never did much with it. And his reputation for having thugs and malcontents on his team - and not dealing with them correctly - still stands strong in my mind.

Who ever we bring in needs to be a high motor guy who will motivate the hell out of our guys, all year we just looked flat on D besides maybe a few plays here and there, We need a guy who's gonna be down in the trenches with our kids to talk to them, help them out, or put a foot in the ass if need be.

UM’s new DC needs to be a true innovator in order to combat the ever changing aspects of the game. However, one tenet of defense will always remain necessary: aggression. And there is no coach out there who is more innovative and aggressive than Lorin F. Deland. He is currently retired from college football, but I am hopeful that he could be persuaded to come back to the sidelines. His resume is a little light, given that he never played football and did not even witness a game until approximately 2 years before devising his first play. Nonetheless, his results speak for themselves.

Deland’s philosophy is rooted in adapting military techniques to football, primarily those of Napolean. “One of the chief points brought out by the great French general,” Deland noted, “was that if he could mass a large proportion of his troops and throw them against a weak point of the enemy, he could easily defeat that portion, and gaining their rear, create havoc with the rest.”

By understanding the similarities between military formations and the principles of football, Deland quickly recognized that by concentrating his forces and effectively utilizing mobility, he could devastate any offense with a brutal combination of mass and momentum. Although he was initially known for his innovative offenses, it was quickly recognized that his teachings were equally applicable to defense. The plays he is best known for are arguably centered around the flying wedge, which ruined defensive lines. But Deland’s Mass Momentum techniques were likewise applicable to defenses and achieved equal results. What better defensive coordinator than one who understands the inherent weaknesses in a defense, namely bones and brain matter?

Many football notables have attested to the effectiveness of Deland’s formations, including the flying wedge:

“It’s in the shape of a letter,” said Urban Meyer, head coach of the Florida Gators. “Have you ever seen a cloud stand up to a flock of geese heading south for the winter? Didn’t think so.”

“It looks like a pie,” drooled Charlie Weis. “I like pie. Therefore, I like the flying wedge. It is a decided schematic advantage for any football team.”

Upon reading the above accolades, I have studied Lorin F. Deland extensively and believe he is the best candidate out there for UM’s DC position. I encourage all of you to do your own research into Deland’s accomplishments, and I am certain you will come to the same conclusion. The modern defensive mind of Deland coupled with the modern offensive mind of Coach Rodriguez is, simply put, a natural marriage.

The Other day during the Motor city bowl RR was interviewed and he said he's gonna hold off on the DC job until bowls are down, cuz people that are interested or would be interested in the job are playing in bowls, if it was Jay Hops wouldn't you think he would be in place already??

10 days ago, Rivals said that Hopson was the man, and that it would be announced after New Year's Day. Numerous High School coaches that have players being recruited to play defense at Michigan claimed to have been told it was Hopson. Take it FWIW.

A) Even if we were already secretly commited going with J-Hop, RR would be foolish not to give the appearance we're looking around (i.e. that we're "settling"). He's already under heat for "settling" too much on "his" ways this past season.

B) If it's a truly open interview process, RR was right to state that most schools liekly wouldn't let their coahces talk to someone else 'till after Bowls.